


someone (you maybe might love)

by alainey



Category: Hades (Video Game 2018)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, First Meetings, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-12
Updated: 2020-10-12
Packaged: 2021-03-07 18:35:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 703
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26972257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alainey/pseuds/alainey
Summary: “Fuck, Cerberus—” someone shouts, and Thanatos looks up from his phone just in time to find three gigantic dogs bounding towards him. The lot of them nearly reach his mid-waist, and Thanatos takes a startled step back, lifting his coffee out of their range of motion.
Relationships: Thanatos/Zagreus (Hades Video Game)
Comments: 31
Kudos: 575





	someone (you maybe might love)

“Fuck, Cerberus—” someone shouts, and Thanatos looks up from his phone just in time to find three gigantic dogs bounding towards him. The lot of them nearly reach his mid-waist, and Thanatos takes a startled step back, lifting his coffee out of their range of motion.

“Hello there,” Thanatos says dryly, once he’s regained his bearings. He watches the slobbery faces of the three great beasts as they press in around him, and he pockets his phone, doing his best to keep them at bay with his empty hand. 

“Fuck,” someone curses again, and Thanatos glances up to find a young man jogging toward him, face flushed and apologetic.

“I’m so sorry,” the man grits out, sighing as he approaches. “Damn it, Cerberus, leave the poor man alone—down, Cerberus, _down._ ”

To Thanatos’s amusement, the three dogs sit—well trained, yet still vibrating with energy—and the man breathes out a quiet laugh, shaking his head and shooting a strained smile Thanatos’s way.

“I’m sorry, again,” he says, gathering up the dogs’ leashes in one hand and running the other through his hair. His arm flexes as he does so, his running clothes leaving little to the imagination, and Thanatos has to snap his eyes back up to the man’s face, blinking away a flush. 

“The three of them get excitable whenever I take them out for a run,” the man continues, heedless to Thanatos’s stare. “They’re good dogs, but their size can make them a little bit intimidating.”

Thanatos glances down to where the dogs stare back at the two of them—great tongues lolling out—and he huffs a small, unexpected laugh.

“It’s fine,” he replies, evenly, “they seem quite sweet.”

“They absolutely are,” the man agrees, lips pulling into a grin. He runs his hand through his hair again, and Thanatos watches the movement out of the corner of his eye. “I hope this wasn’t too much of an issue for you though—are you on your way to work?”

His gaze flicks down to Thanatos’s suit, and Thanatos nods, standing up a little straighter.

“Yes,” Thanatos admits, “though I’m not in any rush. I’m just down the street.”

He inclines his head towards the towering _UnderWorld Inc._ building that sits a block down from the park they’re currently standing in, and the man follows his gaze, eyebrows rising.

“ _UnderWorld_ huh?” he asks, and Thanatos nods again. “What a coincidence. That’s my father’s company.”

Thanatos blinks, then looks closer at the man: more appraisingly than before. 

He’s got the same dark hair that Hades does, yet there’s an easiness about him that Hades has never seemed to have. Thanatos hasn’t worked with the man for very long—having originally been hired at the company’s sister branch—yet what he’s seen of Hades has been stoic and dismissive: nothing like the smiling man that stands in front of him.

“Huh,” Thanatos says, finally. “I was unaware that Hades had a son.” 

The man just shrugs, pulling at the edge of his shirt. “It isn’t common knowledge,” he replies, simply. “And to be completely honest, I wouldn’t say he’s particularly pleased that I am.”

“I see.” Thanatos frowns, but he doesn’t pry any further, and the man’s face clears a moment later. His eyes sharpen as they lock with Thanatos’s own, and they’re a bright, verdant green that makes Thanatos’s breath catch.

“Anyway,” the man says, smiling again, “I’m Zagreus.” He holds out a hand, and when Thanatos takes it, Zagreus’s grip is firm and warm.

“Thanatos,” he replies, and Zagreus’s smile widens.

“It’s nice to meet you Thanatos,” he says, before glancing back down at his trio of dogs, all sitting happily around him. “I should finish Cerberus’s run, but I’ll see you around, yeah?”

Thanatos glances down at the dogs, too many questions at the tip of his tongue. 

_Are all three of them named Cerberus?_ he wonders. _Do you always look this good when you run? What happened between you and your father?_

_And will I actually see you again?_

Thanatos pauses, breath catching, before pushing the questions away.

“Sure, Zagreus,” he finally replies, watching the man’s green eyes flash happily in the early morning light. “See you around.”

**Author's Note:**

> A friend got me thinking about modern AU Zagreus with three giant dogs that are all such a hivemind that he just calls them Cerberus... and this was borne of it. I wrote this with the intention of making it into a fully-fledged modern AU (I so desperately want to write stupid morning coffee dates), but I simply don't have the time right now and wanted to get this out into the world while I could.
> 
> That said, I still hope you enjoyed this—short and sweet as it is. As always, you can find me as [@alainey_lee](https://twitter.com/alainey_lee) on twitter!


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